The hinging of closures in the openings in some structures, particularly the hinging of deck lids, hoods and doors, providing access to luggage compartments, engine compartments and passenger compartments, respectively, of automobiles presents unique problems. It is the practice in automotive design to conceal the hinges so that for aesthetic reasons none of the hinge elements are visible from the exterior of the vehicle structure sheet metal panels. Because deck lids, hoods and doors in vehicle body structure are not flat like an ordinary cupboard door or house door but are contoured to follow the vehicle body contour, they are not swingable about a hinge line or axis located at the edge of the opening in the structure. In order to provide proper movement into and out of the engagement with the weather strips or seals around the opening in the vehicle body structure, the vehicle closures are generally bodily swingable about an axis displaced from the edge of the opening and located interiorly of the compartment. The hinge devices, particularly those mounting the deck lids or hoods, are relatively large devices which intrude into the interior compartment space.
For example, most deck lid hinges have large goose-neck arms which in deck lid closed position projected downwardly into the luggage compartment, see U.S. Pat. No. 2,986,769 issued June 6, 1961 to A. J. Hammond for a deck lid hinge. The hood hinges have compound link systems which protrude into the vehicle engine compartment in closed position of the hood, see U.S. Pat. No. 2,994,907 issued Aug. 8, 1961 to A. J. Hammond for a hood device. The goose-neck arms and compound link systems are required for guiding the deck lids and hoods for swinging movement in a path that avoids interference between the hinge elements and the body structure defining the opening into and out of which the closure is swingable.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a hinge which may be utilized in a closure hinging system in which the closure is swingable about a hinge line or axis located exteriorly of the body structure defined in the opening without requiring exterior exposure of the hinge elements.